


The Pair We Make

by floraltohru



Category: Fruits Basket, Fruits Basket (Anime 2019), Fruits Basket - Takaya Natsuki (Manga)
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Curse, Angst, Champagne, F/M, Light Angst, Manga Spoilers, One-Sided Kuragi Machi/Sohma Yuki, One-Sided Sohma Kyou/Honda Tohru, Pining, Pining Kyou, Pining Machi, Unrequited Love, high school sweethearts
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-21
Updated: 2020-04-21
Packaged: 2021-03-01 22:22:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,559
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23764537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/floraltohru/pseuds/floraltohru
Summary: Kyo and Machi commiserate at Yuki and Tohru's engagement party.-"You're Tohru's friend, aren't you?" she asks, and he’s taken aback, for a moment, to be referred to as “Tohru’s friend” and not “Yuki’s cousin.”“Yeah. Kyo,” he says. “It’s Machi, right?”She nods, but doesn’t elaborate. Why would she? She’s answered his question.He jerks his chin at her empty glass. “Do you need another drink?”
Relationships: Honda Tohru/Sohma Kyou, Honda Tohru/Sohma Yuki, Kuragi Machi/Sohma Yuki, Sohma Kyou & Kuragi Machi, Sohma Kyou/Kuragi Machi
Comments: 22
Kudos: 50





	The Pair We Make

**Author's Note:**

> I'm gonna be honest, I don't know what happened but I'm not mad about it.

He wouldn’t have come to this stupid party, but he has a soft spot for Tohru. 

He shouldn’t have come to this stupid party, regardless. 

Kyo’s nerves are so shot that he’s debating hunting down Shigure and bumming a cigarette off him - he knows Shigure still smokes, even though he claims, on God, that he quit - but Kyo also knows Kazuma would personally kick his ass if he found out. 

He's trying, honestly, not to sulk. This is Tohru's party as much as it is Yuki's, and his affection for her is deeper than his undiluted loathing for him. Sometimes not by much, but the point stands. He’s doing his best to be a grown adult about the situation. 

Kyo checks his watch, and groans inwardly. He really can't justify leaving yet, much as he wants to. It's still early and besides, he hasn't spoken to the happy couple yet. He knows if he left, Tohru wouldn't be angry, but she might be sad. And then he'd have to deal with the wrath of her two best friends - and Yuki's own temper. 

He wouldn’t want to miss a chance to speak with Tohru, either. Even if it hurts, especially seeing her today, looking like some kind of ethereal fairy princess holding court in the garden. She’s only tripped over her own two feet a small handful of times, and Yuki’s always there with a hand on her elbow to steady her. Kyo figures Yuki will always be there to keep Tohru steady. Isn’t that the promise they’re about to make to each other?

Everything is too sharp, too clear. The details are too vivid and his feelings too close to the surface. He needs a drink. 

-

Kakeru wandered off to romance one of Yuki's cousins - either the cute one or the tall one, she can’t remember - so Machi is all by herself, knuckles turning pale as she clutches a dainty crystal flute of champagne. She almost trusts herself not to throw it on the ground just to watch it shatter. Almost. 

The garden is pristine. Every tablecloth is pressed perfectly, the lines sharp and crisp. Yuki himself looks starched and rigid, the collar of his button-up threatening to choke him, his tie done up with precision. He looks nice, Machi thinks, in his immaculate, well-fitted suit. 

So different from the late nights they spent together working on student council projects when they were in school, his hair a mess and his buttons askew, his sweater rumpled and his sleeves pushed up. 

Machi liked that Yuki better, three cups of coffee into an all-nighter and deeply exhausted. At least then, his smile reached his eyes.

She tips back the champagne, finishing it off, and now that the glass is empty she really has to resist the urge to chuck it. Standing on her tiptoes, she scans the crowd for Kakeru. Ah, so it was the tall one, she thinks, finally spotting him chatting up a girl who looks like she could kick his ass into next Tuesday, which Machi would probably pay good money to see. The girl’s boyfriend, however, doesn’t look amused. Kakeru doesn’t seem to be getting the hint, though. Kakeru is an idiot.

Machi keeps looking, trying to find a friendly - or at the very least, familiar - face in the crowd. Hell, she’d even settle for Nao or Kimi, but they’re not in attendance, at least not yet. She’s ready to give up and retreat directly into the rose bushes when a shock of orange hair catches her eye. 

She recognizes the redhead - he was a year ahead of her at Kaibara - but they never really spoke. Now that she thinks about it, she only ever saw him in the context of Tohru, towering over her and glowering at anyone who would dare approach. Including, at times, Tohru's now-fiancé. 

His shirt is a little bit wrinkled. Machi likes that. 

"Hey," she says as he walks past her, and he's so surprised by her directness that he stops in his path. 

"Uh. Hey." He eyes her like she’s a raccoon who’s found its way to his back porch. 

"You're Tohru's friend, aren't you?" she asks, and he’s taken aback, for a moment, to be referred to as “Tohru’s friend” and not “Yuki’s cousin.”

“Yeah. Kyo,” he says. “It’s Machi, right?” 

She nods, but doesn’t elaborate. Why would she? She’s answered his question. 

He jerks his chin at her empty glass. “Do you need another drink?” 

“Yeah.” She realizes just how tightly she’s been holding onto it when she hands him the champagne flute, flexing her fingers now that it’s been liberated from her iron grasp. 

While she waits for him to return, Machi digs the toe of her shoe into the grass. Not enough to cause any damage, just a small divot in the dirt, but it makes her feel better anyway. 

“Wow,” Machi says when he comes back. He hands her a glass nearly overflowing with champagne. She takes a quick sip to keep it from splashing all over her. Kyo’s own glass is filled to match. 

“I think it’s stupid when people only fill them halfway,” he explains. “Just means you’ll have to go back for another glass twice as quick.” 

Machi doesn’t fall in love, with notable exceptions, but given time she thinks she could have this man’s children. 

“That’s some pretty heavy drinking for an engagement party,” she says. 

He doesn’t argue. 

“It’s almost like you’d rather be anywhere but here.”

He doesn’t argue. 

“Maybe you’re in love with one of them,” she prods. “Or both.” 

“I am not in love with Yuki,” he snaps, lashing out on instinct. Even now, a few years removed from their high school graduation, he can’t stand the implication that he harbors any affection for the other Sohma. 

Machi eyes him over the top of her glass as she takes a long drink, then quips, “And I’m not in love with Tohru.” 

Kyo pinches the bridge of his nose with his free hand. “Is it obvious?” he mumbles. 

She shakes her head. “I think anyone would just think you’re being ill-tempered,” she says, shrugging.

“Is that supposed to make me feel better?” 

“It’s not supposed to make you feel anything,” she says simply. “Just an observation.” 

And maybe it’s just the champagne, but it’s a little bit refreshing, Kyo thinks, to talk to someone who’s not trying to tease him - or worse, therapize him. His meddling cousins could take notes. 

Speaking of cousins. “Incoming,” he murmurs to Machi, whose focus on her drink meant she hasn’t been paying attention. She gulps down the last of her champagne and screws on a polite smile. 

Yuki and Tohru descend upon them like some kind of angels, and Kyo is almost shocked that there are no halos perched atop their perfect tresses. Tohru’s hair is pulled back with two lily white ribbons, and he chokes back the impulse to reach out and undo one of them with a single pull. 

“Thank you for coming,” Yuki says graciously, holding out a hand to Kyo. He notes there’s not even a little bit of disdain dripping from Yuki’s words; could it be that he’s genuinely glad Kyo showed up? Maybe he is, if only for Tohru’s sake. Maybe he’s just become a better actor since high school. 

Kyo doesn’t think he could do it if the roles were reversed. Maybe that’s the very reason they’re not. 

“Congratulations,” Kyo says, offering a thin smile. It’s a formality that feels like a ruse; Tohru called to tell him when Yuki popped the question, so he’s already wished them well. Now they have to relive it with all the pomp and circumstance. 

Kyo tries to ignore the place where his chest seems to be ripping in half when Tohru throws her arms around him. “Thank you, Kyo,” she whispers in his ear, and nothing has ever broken his spirit like knowing he’ll never be her choice. The pit in his stomach is so deep, he doesn’t know if he’ll ever find his footing. 

Tohru isn’t cold - she’s never been capable of it, in fact - but she’s more reserved with Machi. They don’t embrace, but Tohru clasps Machi’s hands like they’re sisters and not acquaintances. Yuki also extends a hand to Machi when he greets her, though it’s a degree warmer than when he reached for Kyo; he even bothers to throw in a few questions about her graduate program and generously declines to comment when she stops making eye-contact. 

It’s all so polite. 

“I need a drink,” Kyo says when they’re out of earshot, gliding away elegantly like royalty. “Hey, do you - ?” Machi’s empty glass answers his question, so he leaves it hanging in the air between them. “You need a drink too. Let’s… let’s go get a drink.” 

“I’m tired of champagne,” she says dully.

“Let’s go somewhere then.”

“But Kakeru -” she starts, and Kyo interrupts her. 

“I don’t see Kakeru,” Kyo scoffs. “He left you here by yourself. You’re just returning the favor.”

And Machi knows she doesn’t feel any attraction to Kyo and probably never will, but when he grabs her by the elbow and leads her away from the party, she lets herself believe that there’s a universe in which she could. Even if it’s only once. Even if it’s only tonight.

**Author's Note:**

> Not sure what this even is, tbh. I love Yukiru, but I always wonder where the other halves of the canon ships end up when it's the pairing... so here's my speculation. 
> 
> Find me on tumblr @floraltohru!


End file.
